To:Army Air Force,com I have tried to locate John W. Wingfield, Jr. who posts to your web, trying for info on his father. I could not find any to help. His father was 416th Sqdn Gunner. Herv is the info John needs.
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Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 28 2003 2:21 PM
Army Air Corps: When the Army Air Force recruited the college students in 1942 as Aviation Cadets from the colleges and universities across the land, then they told the students that they were needed as officers in the rapidly expanding Army Air Force and would become pilots, navigators, or bombardiers. Furthermore, those that did not choose to fly and had two years of college would become an Aviation Cadet Ground Crew and commissioned in armaments, communication, meteorology, photography, or engineering. But, when the AAF discovered at the end of 1943 that their over zealous recruiting and over estimation of loss rate had created a large surplus of pilots, they ignored all of the promises made to the college students and began transferring them to technical schools. This did not create a pleasant situation for the schools or the ex-cadets.
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Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 28 3002 10:24 AM
Enlisted Reserve Corps, Boot Camp:
AIR CADET. 1942 I received my civilian pilots license from Hartung Airport at Gratiot and 10-½ mile. 1943 I enlisted in the Army Air Corps. ERC (enlisted reserve Corps). I was sent to Miami Beach, Florida for basic training. We stayed in Netherlands Hotel on Ocean Drive across from the Atlantic Ocean. The Air Corps took over about 300 hotels on south Miami Beach. The first morning the sergeant walked on all the floors blowing whistle and telling every one to fall out in front of the hotel in 4 lines. We were marched (walked) to the Tide (green latrine) hotel for breakfast. As we lined up to go in, 2 kids walked along selling orange juice, pineapple juice and grapefruit juice.
Our training took place on the city streets and golf courses and theaters. A typical day was up at 5:10 A.M. to fall out in front of the hotel for Reville, 5:30 back to our rooms to clean them, 5:45 fall out in front and march to breakfast 6:30 back at our hotel to make our beds and clean the room, 7:00 we marched from our hotel to the drill field (which is the golf course), We trained until 11:00 marched back to our hotel at 11:30. Now we got our mail, and at 11:45 went to chow (lunch), then back to our hotel to clean it up again. At 1:00 P.M. we march back to the drill field and trained until 2:45 and got back to our hotel at 3:15. We change to our bathing suits and walk across street for P.T. on the sand beach, finish P.T. at4:45 and go back to our rooms and put on our Class A uniforms. We have Retreat 5:15 and chow at 6:25. The rest of day is ours. Lights out at 9:00 P.M. and in bed at 10:00 P.M. We trained 6 days a week, Sundays off, and I went to church on Sundays in town.
November 1943 finished training and men were shipping out, I was not so I went to the Air Inspector Office to check out when I would be shipped out. He looked for my records and said I would be shipped out in 24 hours and I was. We went by train to Gettysburg College Dec. 5, 1943.
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Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 29 2003 6:15 AM
Almost AWOL Christmas
Christmas Season 1943. I had been away from my fiancee for only 4 months
when I arrived at Gettysburg College as Air Corps Cadet. I was a homesick
fly boy. I called my Charlotte (Micky) and told her I missed her and was going
A.W.O.L. and come home to see her. Bang!! I got a stern voice saying, "No
you stay there†and she would come to see me. On Friday Dec 24 Micky came
with my mother and father. I met them at 9 A.M. The next three days were great.
Sunday night I walked (Gettysburg was only a couple of blocks in those days)
them to the Bus Stop. I said goodbye and slowly walked back to "Old Dorm."
which was our barracks and as the old song said "tears flowed like wine."
~~~
Posted by: cadetat6 Jul 29 2003 11:55 AM
Army Air Corps, 3 Things Not To Do
I had my pilot’s license before I enlisted in 1943 and found 3 things not to do.
